Proactive roaming handshakes based on mobility graphs

Abstract

In one embodiment, a service maintains a mobility path graph that represents roaming transitions between wireless access points in a network by one or more client devices in the network. The service identifies, using the mobility path graph, one of the wireless access points in the network to which a particular client device is predicted to roam. The service performs, in advance of the particular client device initiating roaming to the one or more wireless access points, one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam. The service sends handshake data from the performed one or more roaming handshakes to the identified access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method comprising:
 maintaining, by a service, a mobility path graph that represents roaming transitions between wireless access points in a network by one or more client devices in the network; 
 identifying, by the service and using the mobility path graph, one of the wireless access points in the network to which a particular client device is predicted to roam; 
 performing, by the service and in advance of the particular client device initiating roaming to the one or more wireless access points, one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam, wherein performing the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device includes:
 determining, by the service, that a first Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) handshake performed by the service on behalf of the particular client with a first DHCP server has failed; and 
 performing, by the service and based on the first DHCP handshake failing, a second DHCP handshake with a second DHCP server on behalf of the particular client; and 
 
 sending, by the service, handshake data from the performed one or more roaming handshakes to the identified access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam. 
 
     
     
       2. The method as in  claim 1 , wherein identifying the wireless access point to which the particular client is predicted to roam comprises:
 using, by the service, a machine learning-based model to predict a mobility path of the particular client device, based on previous movements of the particular client device. 
 
     
     
       3. The method as in  claim 1 , wherein identifying the wireless access point to which the particular client is predicted to roam comprises:
 using, by the service, a machine learning-based model to predict a mobility path of the particular client device, based on previous movements of a plurality of client devices in the network. 
 
     
     
       4. The method as in  claim 1 , wherein performing the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam comprises:
 sending, by the service, authentication data on behalf of the particular client device to a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) server. 
 
     
     
       5. The method as in  claim 1 , wherein performing the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam comprises:
 sending, by the service, a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) request to a DHCP server on behalf of the particular client device. 
 
     
     
       6. The method as in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 predicting, by the service, that a handshake performed by the service on behalf of the particular client will fail; and 
 causing, by the service, the particular client device to roam to a different wireless access point, based on the prediction that the handshake will fail. 
 
     
     
       7. The method as in  claim 6 , wherein the handshake is predicted to fail because the wireless access points in the network to which the particular client device is predicted to roam has reached a maximum number of admitted client devices. 
     
     
       8. The method as in  claim 1 , wherein the first DHCP handshake failed because a pool Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of the first DHCP server was exhausted. 
     
     
       9. An apparatus comprising:
 one or more network interfaces to communicate with a network; 
 a processor coupled to the network interfaces and configured to execute one or more processes; and 
 a memory configured to store a process executable by the processor, the process when executed configured to:
 maintain a mobility path graph that represents roaming transitions between wireless access points in a network by one or more client devices in the network; 
 identify, using the mobility path graph, one of the wireless access points in the network to which a particular client device is predicted to roam; 
 perform, in advance of the particular client device initiating roaming to the one or more wireless access points, one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam, wherein the apparatus performs the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device by:
 determining that a first Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) handshake performed by the service on behalf of the particular client with a first DHCP server has failed; and 
 performing, based on the first DHCP handshake failing, a second DHCP handshake with a second DHCP server on behalf of the particular client; and 
 
 send handshake data from the performed one or more roaming handshakes to the identified access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam. 
 
 
     
     
       10. The apparatus as in  claim 9 , wherein the apparatus identifies the wireless access point to which the particular client is predicted to roam by:
 using a machine learning-based model to predict a mobility path of the particular client device, based on previous movements of the particular client device. 
 
     
     
       11. The apparatus as in  claim 9 , wherein the apparatus identifies the wireless access point to which the particular client is predicted to roam by:
 using a machine learning-based model to predict a mobility path of the particular client device, based on previous movements of a plurality of client devices in the network. 
 
     
     
       12. The apparatus as in  claim 9 , wherein the apparatus performs the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam by:
 sending authentication data on behalf of the particular client device to a Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) server. 
 
     
     
       13. The apparatus as in  claim 11 , wherein the apparatus performs the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam by:
 sending a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) request to a DHCP server on behalf of the particular client device. 
 
     
     
       14. The apparatus as in  claim 9 , wherein the process when executed is further configured to:
 predict that a handshake performed by the apparatus on behalf of the particular client will fail; and 
 cause the particular client device to roam to a different wireless access point, based on the prediction that the handshake will fail. 
 
     
     
       15. The apparatus as in  claim 14 , wherein the handshake is predicted to fail because the wireless access points in the network to which the particular client device is predicted to roam has reached a maximum number of admitted client devices. 
     
     
       16. The apparatus as in  claim 9 , wherein the first DHCP handshake failed because a pool Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of the first DHCP server was exhausted. 
     
     
       17. The apparatus as in  claim 9 , wherein the apparatus comprises a wireless access point or wireless local area network controller (WLC) to which the particular client device is associated. 
     
     
       18. A tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable medium storing program instructions that cause a device to execute a process comprising:
 maintaining a mobility path graph that represents roaming transitions between wireless access points in a network by one or more client devices in the network; 
 identifying, using the mobility path graph, one of the wireless access points in the network to which a particular client device is predicted to roam; 
 performing, in advance of the particular client device initiating roaming to the one or more wireless access points, one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device and with respect to the wireless access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam wherein performing the one or more roaming handshakes on behalf of the particular client device includes:
 determining that a first Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) handshake performed by the service on behalf of the particular client with a first DHCP server has failed; and 
 performing, based on the first DHCP handshake failing, a second DHCP handshake with a second DHCP server on behalf of the particular client; and 
 
 sending handshake data from the performed one or more roaming handshakes to the identified access point to which the particular client device is predicted to roam.